Hair-crimper



(No Model.)

' I. W. HEY'S'INGER.

- HAIR GRIMPER. No. 347,177. Patented Aug. 10, 1886.

III" ""1 N, PETERS. Phomum n w. Wuhingim 0.0

UNITED STATES PATENT Grrrca.

ISAAC \V. HEYSINGER, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

l-l'AlR-CRIMPER.

SPECIPICAII ON -Ior ming part of Letters Patent No. 347,177, datedAugustlO, 1886,

Application filed April 19, 1886.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ISAAC W. HEYSINGER, of Philadelphia, in the countyof Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a certain newand useful Improvementin Hair- Crimpers,of which the following is afull,clear, and exact description, reference being had to the drawingsaccompanying and forming a part of this specification, in w'liich- 1Figure 1 showsin cross section and perspective a hair'crimper embodyingmy invention in one of the subordinate forms in which it is applicable.Fig. 2 is a like view of one of my crimpers, showing the parallel stripsof metal or wires,between which I run a row of stitches, and having thestiffening re-enforee, as hereinafter described. Fig. 3 is acrosssectionof one of my erimpers, which differs from Fig. 2

. overlap.

in showing a two-ply strip of'r'e-enforce instead of one folded over.Fig. 4 shows a crimper using only a single metal strip of less widththan the body of the crimper which has a body of tough paper or fiber orlike material without an outside covering, and in which the row ofstitches passes alongsidethe metal strip and through the body aforesaid.Fig. 5 shows a similar crimper to Fig. 8, except that the re-en force ofpaper or fiber lies between the two parallel wires or metal strips,andis protected by a covering of fabric, which Ifsliow cemented down at itsoverlap, the constituent elements of the crimper being all cementedtogether as made, as shown in the Letters Patent No. 218,300, datedAugust 5, 1879; or the cover alone may be cemented down at its fold orFig. 6 shows acrimper similar to that shown in Fig. 4, except that twoparallel wires are used and the stitching is done between, no cover offabric being used. Fig. 7 shows a similar crimper in which there-enforce is made by a wrapping of tow, cotton, soft paper, or fabric,the row of stitches between the wires holding the cover and all theparts in place. This form is particularly useful for large rolls orcurlers. Fig. 8 shows a crimper having a single metallicstrip in whichthe cover and re-enforce of paper are both folded around the coretogether and seamed down by the row of stitches; and Fig. 9 is alongitudinal section through the middle line of a length ofcrimper-stuff marked at various Serial No. 1l9 395. (No model.)

points where it is to be cut apart to form different crimpers,and showsthe row of stitches, the cover of fabric, the re-enforce of paper, felt,vnlcanite, cloth, or other material, and the metallic strip.

The lettering in all the figures is uniform.

My present invention is designed to be an improvement upon that securedto me by Letters Patent No. 309,854, granted December 30, 1884, theadvantages of my present invention being greater cheapness, ease ofstitching,and capacity for greater bulk than in the invention covered bymy former Letters Patent aforesaid.

While the different figures show a number of subordinate forms differingsomewhat in detail, the essential features of my invention, in whole orpart, will be found to be common to all. My invention relates to theconstruction of a hair-crimper intended to hold strands of hair, whentwisted around the same, from unrolling, by making the crimper of anelongated'soft-metal non-clastic body, so that the ends thereof may bebent around the strand of hair and securely hold the same, being adaptedfor use repeatedly,aecording to the ability of the material to standrepeated tlexion with out breaking.

In my Letters Patent aforesaid I constructed my crimper byfolding arounda soft-metal core-strip a cover of fabric which was secured to the saidcore-strip by a seam running along the said crimper, and uniting thesaid cover of fabric to the said core of metal. I usually formed my scamby a row of stitches which passed through the cover of fabric, and alsothrough the metal core-strip, thus sewing both togetherfrom end to end.The crimper therein shown and described is an excellent one, and whenmade of light metal is easily sewed through, especiallyif the metal belead,which is what I usually employ; but in larger sizes the weight ofthe lead and its cost become an objection, andthe sewing or seaming isdone with more difficulty. I have therefore devised the presentimprovement upon the said invention, which consists, essentially, in theemployment of a pair of parallel wires lying, perhaps, an eighth orthree-sixteenths of an inch apart, which said wires may be of soft iron,brass, or other ductile metal, and connecting them together with are-enforee or support of paper,vulcanizcd fiber, felt,tow, cotton, softrubber, or any like substance, so as to pre vent folding inward alongthe seam,and insure the requisite form and resistance of the body of thecrimper, and covering this compound core with a layer of fabric seameddown longitudinally along the crin1per,'either by a row of stitches,which is what I prefer to use, or in certain cases by a cemented edge,which said seam may run along the middle line of the crimper, or mayextend in a spiral around the same, as set forth in my former LettersPatent aforesaid. hen I cement my covering to the core, I make noelaimto this construction, broadly, as the same is covered by theLetters Patent No. 218,300, dated August 5, 1879, but limit myself tothe specific construction shown and described.

Instead of using a double wire, or two parallel wires, I sometimes useonly a single wire, which I prefer to place to the right or left of themiddle line, and then run my row of stitches alongside the same andthrough the re-enforce. I sometimes also do not use a covering offabric, but make my re-enforee of tough board properly prepared, such asmay be obtained in the market, of leatherette, kid, or other skin, orlike material of various kinds, stretch my parallel wires along the stri)S of the same, which I fold over and secure by a line of stitches downthe middle, or an equivalent seam of any other kind, though I prefer touse the sewed seam as being better, neater, morellexible, and strongerinuse. The punctures of the needle and the pliability of the thread assistin making the crimper more flexible, while the wires furnish thestiffness and ductility required to hold the hair. \Yheu I make up largerolls for curlers or crimpers, I sometimes wrap them around the twoparallel wires with a men force of pulpy orsol't materialsuch as tow,soft paper, &c. and run my row of stitches between the said wires, tosecure all together.

I am aware that crimpers have been made by covering a soft-metal wire orstrip with hemp and applying to the same a covering of fabric. I am alsoaware that sheets of lead and strips of lead and paper have been used,folded together, for doing up the hair, from time innnemorial, and thatartificial flowerstems, bonnet and brace wire, woven-wire braids used bywig-makers, electrically-insulated wires for Ruhmkorff coils ortransmission of electricity, and multitudes of other analogousconstructions consisting of strips of paper or like material and aninterposed wire, the whole covered by fabric, have been in use for manyyears. I am also aware that bonnet-wires have been wrapped with fabricin a spiral, and that in certain English patents and elsewhere electricwires have been wrapped with an insulating fabric cemented fold to foldin a spiral form, but I make no claim, broadly, to any of the abovefeatures,

but limit myself to the specific features herein shown and described.

Referring to the drawings, A. is the covering of my crimper, which Iprefer to make of a long strip of muslin or other fabric wide enough toinclose the erimper-body on all sides, and have an overlap or seam,through which I usually run a row of stitches on a sewing-machine, as isfully set forth in my Letters Patent of December 30, 188i, aforcsaid.

The body of my crimper consists of a strip of metal soft and ductileenough to bend freely without breaking, but firm enough to hold soeurelywhen the end is folded over and pinched down upon a strand of hair.Around this metallic strip, as shown in Fig. 1, where the edges cometogether flush on one side, is wrapped a re-cnforcing strip of paper orother material, such as has been hereinbefore mentioned in thisconnection. The row of stitches D will pass through the upper layer andoverlapof the cover A, the re-enforee G, the metal core-strip B, and thelower layers of men force and coverbelow, thus holding all together fromend to end. It is obvious that the re-enforee 0 enables a much largerbodied erimper to be made than could be done by stitching through aheavy metal body, '3, which would thus become, by its size, too rigid tobe folded over readily, and would be heavy in use and costly to make. Byvarying the thickness of the re-cnforce crimpers swollen in the middlemay be readily produced, as I do in my Letters Patent hereinbcforementioned, by varying the size of the lead core.

In Fig. 2 the folded re-enforcc, instead of passing entirely around thecore-strip, has a sectional form something like a letter U, lyingsidewise, and in the bifurcation are two strips of wire, which forcheapuess may be iron wire, such as bonnet-wire, either covered orplain, as the needle does not penetrate the core-strip, but passesbetween the two parallel wires of which it is composed, while there-enforce C keeps the form and bulk intact. To form this crimper in asewing-machine no detailed description will be necessary. A guide, likea hemmer, turns the outer covering, A, around the core B C. The foldedre-enforee is made by feeding the paper strip into a hemmer within theone for the cover A, and the wires are guided, as in cording cloth, by atwo-eyed cord guide, so that all three elements are delivered under theneedle in the form shown in Fig. 2. The feed, take up, and otheradjuncts are fully described in my Illetters Patent afore said, datedDecember 30, 1884, No. 309,854, and I use the same devices in thisinvention.

In Fig. 3 I show the same arrangement as in Fig. 2, except that there-enforce, instead of being folded over at the edge, as at C, Fig. 2,consists of two separate strips, 0 C between the outer edges of whichlie the parallel wires B B, the whole inclosed by the strip of fabric A,stitched down between the parallel wires B and B by the stitched seam D.The fabric is fed to the machine almost precisely as in Fig. 2, exceptthat the twoeyed corder has aslot or space above and below,-so that thetwo strips and the two wires all go under the needle through the sameguide, while the strip of fabric is turned over the outside.

In Fig. 4 I show but asingle wire, B, but I' do not stitch through thiswire, as shown in Fig. 1. The wire B lies alongside the row of stitches,and the space on the opposite side is filled by the surplus O of thereenforce C, which is left wide enough to turn down and keep the crimperin form.

In Fig. 4 I do not show a covering of fabric, as the re-enforce may bemade of a felted material or of tough paper, which, when surfaced orindented, may be made to look .very well and render excellent service atless cost than were an outer covering 'of fabric added. The stitchedseam D, Fig. 4, thus passes through the overlap and upper fold of C,then alongside the wire B and through the under side of O.

In Fig. 5 I show the parallel wires B B'separated by some interval,which interval I fill with a long strip of paper or'other materialhaving a thickness equal to that of the wires, so that a triple core ismade consisting of two side strips of metal and a middle one of toughpaper, 0. Around the whole is tightly folded the covering-strip offabric A, which is over lapped and scanned along its upper side. Thisseam in Fig. 5 I show as being cemented down to theupper fold of fabric,so as to make afirm and aflexible joint. The cement may be ordinaryfish-glue or any other cement desired, but I prefer to use a cementwhich will resist the action of moisture. I therefore ordinarily employeither an elastic cement of gutta-percha made with a proper solvent orof india-rubber; or I use a cement of fish-glue and bichromate of potashapplied from a dark box, which becomes insoluble when exposed to. the liht.

In Fig. 6 I show a stitched seam, D, a double wire, B B, and are-enforce properly surfaced so, as to show handsomely, and ofproperlyprepared material, but without a covering of fabric.

Fig. 7 shows the covering of fabric A and the parallel wires B B, while0 is a layer of bulky and soft material rolled around the wires orotherwise applied so as to secure a large bulk. The row of stitches D isnot made with a hard enough tension to draw the sides together. Thisform I use for making curlers or round and large bodied braiders forthehair. Fig. 8 is a simple modification of Fig. 1, in

which the covering of fabric A and non-metallic re-enforce O are laidupon each other, and both wrapped around the core,which may be a singlestrand of wire or of two parallel wires, and then seamed down by the rowof 65, stitches D.

It will be seen that by the use of my present invention suchhair-crimpers as I describe may be made at a very low cost and in greatvariety, and that they are well adapted to the purposes for which theyare intended,and may be used for other analogous purposes for which theyare suitable.

Having now described my invention,what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, 1s

1. A hair-crimper consisting of the parallel soft-metal core-strips B B,the re-enforce O,to give form and body thereto,the covering-strip offabric A,and the stitched seam D,the whole constructed substantially asand for the purposes described.

2. In a hair-crimper, the parallel wires or strips of soft metal, B B,the interposed re-enforce of non-metallicmaterial, G, and thecovering-strip of fabric, A,h aving overlaid seam E, cemented orstitched to secure the sides thereof together, substantially asdescribed.

3. As an article of manufacture, a haircrimper consisting of anelongatedpiece of non-elastic material having one or more parallel wiresof soft metal and a covering or reenforce of non-metallic material,saidcovering and said wire or wires being held together by a stitched scam,the stitches of which pass alongside the said wire or wires and throughthe said re-enforce, said reenforce being sufficiently rigid to preventthe sides of the crimper from folding over when in use along the saidstitched seam, substantially as described.

4. A length of crimper stuff consisting of two parallel soft-metal wiressupported by a non-metallic re-enforce and covered by a strip of fabricfolded over, and having an overlapping seam secured to the opposite edgeof the said strip of fabric from end to end, so that the said length ofcrimper stuff ma be cutintosuitable lengths for hair-erimpers withoutunrolling or fraying, substantially as described.

5. In a hair-crimper, the body consisting of the wire or wires B B,ortheir equivalent, and the re enforce O,in combination with thecovering-strip of fabric folded over the said body, and having the edgesthereof j oined by a seam or cement unaffected by the moisture of wet II5 strands of hair, substantially'as described. ISAAC \V. HEYSINGEB.

\Vitnesses:

J. LOREN HEYSINGER, M. B. FENNINGER.

